


Misumi's Ultimate Triangle Treatment

by vagarius



Category: A3! (Video Game)
Genre: Friendship, Gen, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Light Angst, inspired by another fic, takes place during act 2
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-29
Updated: 2020-01-29
Packaged: 2021-02-27 15:14:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 968
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22465486
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vagarius/pseuds/vagarius
Summary: Misumi's here to help!or: Tenma realizes some things.
Relationships: Ikaruga Misumi & Sumeragi Tenma, Rurikawa Yuki & Sumeragi Tenma
Comments: 17
Kudos: 122





	Misumi's Ultimate Triangle Treatment

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Summer Bonding](https://archiveofourown.org/works/22445272) by [91bil](https://archiveofourown.org/users/91bil/pseuds/91bil). 



> i've always wanted to write a title of misleading tone, now i finally get to!!
> 
> i personally hc misumi having experienced child neglect as opposed to physical abuse, but this kinda just… happened.
> 
> inspired by chapter 1 of "Summer Bonding" by 91bil, which also takes place after tenma gets the black eye from his dad
> 
> EDIT: HI!!! PRINCE (@Prince_0612X on twitter) MADE BEAUTIFUL ART FOR THIS FIC PLEASE VIEW IT [HERE](https://twitter.com/Prince_0612X/status/1270802583288860672?s=20)

Tenma is lying in bed, script held above his face, when he hears the knock on the door. "Tenma?" Misumi calls, voice easily recognizable even when muffled by the door.

"It's for you, hack," Yuki says, bent over his homework, but gets up anyway to let Misumi in. He doesn't spare Misumi a glance before he sits back down, but Misumi doesn't seem to mind, still shooting him a grateful smile.

He bounces over to Tenma, a small, worn-out bag – _triangle-shaped, why did I expect any less_ – clutched in his hands. Tenma really doesn't want to deal with anyone right now, especially not someone as excitable as Misumi, but he has even less desire to leave his bedroom while he still has an icepack pressed to his face.

"Tenma!" Misumi repeats, briefly frowning at his swollen eye. His expression quickly brightens again as he holds up the bag in his hand. "I'm here to help! With Triangle Treatment!"

"Triangle treatment?" Tenma asks, reluctantly putting the script to the side as he sits up.

"Triangle Treatment!" Misumi confirms. "Step one: Ice! Tenma is smart and already did step one. Tenma is a good boy~"

Yuki snorts from his desk. Tenma valiantly ignores him.

"Step two!" Misumi continues, undeterred by Tenma's lack of response. He pulls out an over-the-counter bottle of pills from his bag, then sets down the bag on Tenma's bed so he can open the bottle. "Medicine! It'll reduce the swelling and make it hurt less. Since Tenma's eye has already started to look better, he should just take one." He grabs Tenma's free hand with his own, then pours a single pill into his palm. Tenma awkwardly sets it on his nightstand, foregoing the medicine, at least for now. Misumi is unbothered by the action, already picking his bag back up to rummage through it.

Misumi cheers when he finds what he's looking for, pulling out a pale beige tube and a brush. "Step three: Cover up! I can help Tenma with it before he goes to school in the morning, if he wants me to."

"How does this help…" Tenma mumbles, taking the offered tube from Misumi and rolling it between his fingers. _Concealer?_

"I have this, too!" Misumi says, pulling out a container of powder foundation. "It's fun to use because the brush is so fluffy~"

 _What's with this sudden sense of foreboding…_ "Misumi," Tenma cuts in. "What exactly is triangle treatment?"

Misumi tilts his head. "What do you mean? It's what Jii-chan taught me. If I was ever injured without him around, then I was supposed to do Triangle Treatment. It's a triangle, so it's really easy to remember." The smile Misumi shoots him after his explanation is bright, but the churning in Tenma's stomach prevents him from feeling its warmth.

"Then," Tenma continues, "why step three?"

Tenma almost feels bad for his question when Misumi's lips immediately pull downward, his nose scrunching like he's trying to remember something he long forgot. "Because if I didn't, I wouldn't be able to see the cats? I think…"

"Cats?"

"Yeah…" Misumi blinks slowly, as if he's a cat himself. "If I had marks, I couldn't…"

"Couldn't what?" Tenma prompts, but Misumi is already far, far away, frown gradually deepening as he mumbles.

"That's right," Misumi continues, "if I didn't, then…"

Yuki has turned away from his desk, at this point, a startled look on his face. Had it been another situation, Tenma would have found the expression comical, but all Tenma can do now is stare back at him, probably looking the same.

"Misumi," Tenma calls, as Misumi continues to mumble. _"Misumi."_

"Ah!" Misumi suddenly chirps. "I remembered! If I didn't cover up, I wasn't allowed to go to school and see the cats!"

"Huh?" Tenma exclaims.

"Mom, she would…" Misumi trails off, holding his triangular bag tighter to his chest. "Tenma doesn't haven't to worry about that, because Tenma's a good boy, but I figured you might want to cover the bruise up anyway! It's part of Triangle Treatment, after all."

"Right…" Tenma says, stomach still lightly churning at the explanation. Misumi had managed to explain both everything and nothing at all, and Tenma can only hope he didn't mean what Tenma is thinking. _Who am I kidding, though…_

Misumi is still clutching the bag and looking at Tenma expectantly, and Tenma still isn't sure what to say. "Thanks," he eventually settles on. "I have my own makeup, though, so you don't need to worry about helping me with step three."

Misumi leans closer, then, his face growing serious as his voice lowers to a whisper. "Has Tenma had to do step three before?"

"Ah, no," Tenma answers, voice also lowering in volume. "Just stage makeup for movies and photoshoots."

"That sounds fun!" he comments, back to normal volume. He puts all his supplies back in the bag before bouncing toward the middle of the room. "I'm glad Tenma's okay! Don't forget the rest of Triangle Treatment, okay, Tenma?"

"I won't," Tenma says, feeling the emotional equivalent of whiplash.

Misumi leaves the room with a wave. Silence falls after the door shuts, Tenma's script and Yuki's homework momentarily forgotten.

The click and scratch of Yuki's mechanical pencil eventually starts up again. "You've realized," he says, without looking up, "what triangle treatment was for, right? Or do you need me to explain?"

Yuki's last question sounds brattier than strictly necessary, but Tenma doesn't bother to retort. "I know," he answers.

The tip of Yuki's pencil snaps, and Tenma pretends he doesn't hear the excessive number of clicks that follow it. He grabs the abandoned script from his nightstand before lying back down, and places his icepack somewhere next to his head.

It takes a while for the words on the script to make sense again.

**Author's Note:**

> [twitter: @jea9yj](https://twitter.com/jea9yj)


End file.
